Raiders rookie linebacker Rolando McClain picked up Rams wide receiver Danny Amendola on Sunday and slammed him into the infield dirt at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum.

As a result, he's been fined $5,000.

On first viewing I referred to the tackle as a body slam, but watching the video again I'd have to say it was really more of a belly-to-back suplex. Either way, it was a move seen more often in a WWE ring than a football field, and it's actually a little surprising that McClain wasn't fined more than $5,000.

McClain's 15-yard unnecessary roughness penalty helped to set up a Rams touchdown.

Unnecessary perhaps, but not worthy of a fine. The Broncos Eric Decker and Parrish Cox both got fines as well. Decker, $5k for a late hit and Cox $7.5k for a throat slash. Seriously, $7500 for a throat slash? Sucks for him, 5th rounders don't make a ton to begin with, $7500 pulled out of his game check will leave him with about half of his normal take home. The upside...bet he doesn't do that throat slash again.

A day after 49ers coach Mike Singletary said Jimmy Raye would be the offensive coordinator for the rest of the season, Raye was fired by San Francisco, a team source told ESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter.

Quarterbacks coach Mike Johnson was promoted to lead play caller, the source said. Johnson becomes the 49ers' eighth offensive coordinator in eight seasons.

George Blanda, one of the toughest and most unique players in NFL history, has passed away.

Blanda was the league's all-time leading scorer when he retired in 1976 after 26 seasons as a quarterback/place-kicker. A first-ballot Hall of Famer, Blanda played with the Chicago Bears, Houston Oilers, and finally with the Oakland Raiders. He won AFL titles with the Oilers in 1960 and 1961.

Blanda started out as just a kicker in Chicago, but he became a record setting quarterback in Houston. He's perhaps best known for being the most improbable Player of the Year award winner (then called the Bert Bell Award) in history at age 43.

Cut at the beginning of the 1970 season and 12 seasons after his first retirement, Blanda went on an insane five-week run where he either replaced Raiders quarterback Daryle LaMonica to lead the Raiders to a comeback victory or kicked a winning or tying field goal. Every single week.

The book America's Game describes how Blanda's story in 1970 broke normal boundaries. He was on the cover of Sports Illustrated, Time, and Newsweek. He was joked about by Johnny Carson. He symbolized a new kind of life after 40.

"We are deeply saddened by the passing of the great George Blanda," the Raiders said in a statement. "George was a brave Raider and a close personal friend of Raiders Owner Al Davis."

Blanda is the placekicker on the All-Time AFL Team and didn't retire until he was 49 years old. He was 83. We sent our thoughts to the Blandas and his extended football family.

Last hour, Mike Dempsey of 1010XL and I spent a large chunk of our weekly spot talking about whether the Jaguars would claim former Bills quarterback Trent Edwards. Dempsey finished the subject by pointing out that we'd find out the answer at 4:00 p.m. ET.

And we have.

Adam Schefter of ESPN reports that the Jaguars have been awarded Edwards' contract on waivers.

Edwards joins a team that currently has David Garrard at the top of the depth chart. Following a breakthrough performance in 2007, which came after coach Jack Del Rio made an all-in gamble on Garrard, the former East Carolina quarterback has seen his game fall apart. Through three games, his passer rating falls on the wrong side of the Kordoza line.

And the thinking has been that, if the team had anyone better than Todd Bouman behind Garrard, Garrard's behind would be on the bench.

With Edwards in the fold, that could happen soon.

In three-plus seasons, Edwards has started 32 games. His best season came in 2008, with 2,699 yards passing and a 65.5 percent completion percentage in 14 starts.

With Larry Fitzgerald slow out of the gates, Breaston actually leads the Cardinals with 14 catches for 183 yards through three games. Arizona is also without third receiver Early Doucet, who is coming off groin surgery.

The Cardinals are likely going to have to rely on undrafted rookie Stephen Williams. Another undrafted rookie Max Komar could be No. 4. Derek Anderson, meanwhile, is playing behind a reconfigured and struggling offensive line.

Tomlinson's teammates take up for him
Posted by Mike Florio on September 30, 2010 10:56 PM ET

One of the biggest surprises of the young season has come in New York, where veteran running back LaDainian Tomlinson has gained 208 yards, averaging an eye-popping 5.6 yards per carry. Tomlinson has quieted critics who believed that he was washed up, although it remains to be seen whether he'll hold up over the long haul of the season.

Regardless of how the story unfolds, Tomlinson has won over his new teammates, who have lined up to fire back at Tomlinson's old ones.

Michael Silver of Yahoo! Sports has compiled a stream of quotes from Jets players in response to the shots fired by Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers and Chargers tight end Antonio Gates at Tomlinson.

Said tackle Damien Woody: "Yeah, we all saw that. It was kind of like nuke missiles flying from the other side It's unfortunate that somebody would say something after you leave. What does that say about you? We've got his back 100 percent. I've been telling people, LT's still got a lot of giddy-up in his legs. San Diego is Philip Rivers' team now. A lot has changed. They have an aerial attack -- it's like their receivers are basketball players and they're playing alley-oop. So when they go to run the ball, they can't. We practice that every day. Rex calls it ground and pound."

Said linebacker Jason Taylor: "I think it's very disappointing that guys would do that. It's a little unprofessional. If you call the guy a friend, you ought not to do that. If you had an issue, you should speak to him face-to-face."

Linebacker Bart Scott was slightly more blunt. (Imagine that.) "Man up," Scott said. "Drop your balls. Have a pair. Say it. LT's a lot classier than I am. I'd have fired back with an atomic bomb."

Even coach Rex Ryan got in on the act, too. "Yeah, I think it's hilarious," Ryan told Silver. "Here's one of the finest players in the history of your organization, if not the finest, and a former NFL Man of the Year. Every franchise would love to have a person and player like that. And they're taking shots at that guy? We've got a great back in LaDainian. He's tremendous. Does he look like he's through? Absolutely not. He's strong. He looks fast. He looks tremendous to me."

So far, Tomlinson has indeed been tremendous; a 21-yard run early in the second quarter of Sunday night's win over the Dolphins proved that Tomlinson still has that old burst, the one that he was supposedly too old to pull off. Shonn Greene, who was presumed by many to be poised to develop into a high-end tailback, has only 106 yards, with an anemic average of 3.5 per carry.

In eight trips inside the 20-yard line this season, the Eagles have scored seven touchdowns for a conversion rate of 87.5 percent. The one trip into the red zone without a touchdown ended in a David Akers field goal.

The Redskins, on the other hand, are tied for last in the league with Pittsburgh with a 22 percent red zone conversion rate, scoring just two touchdowns on nine crossings of the 20-yard line.

Saw this in my local paper today, thought it was interesting both that Shanny is picking up right where he left off and that Pittsburgh, despite being perhaps the best team in the league thus far this season, is having red zone issues apparently worse than ours. How is that possible?

Michael Silver of Yahoo! Sports has compiled a stream of quotes from Jets players in response to the shots fired by Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers and Chargers tight end Antonio Gates at Tomlinson.

Quote:

Originally Posted by TonyR

So far, Tomlinson has indeed been tremendous; a 21-yard run early in the second quarter of Sunday night's win over the Dolphins proved that Tomlinson still has that old burst, the one that he was supposedly too old to pull off. Shonn Greene, who was presumed by many to be poised to develop into a high-end tailback, has only 106 yards, with an anemic average of 3.5 per carry.[/I]